UCLA football has talent, and question marks, going into 2014

In this file photo, UCLA QB Brett Hundley celebrates his 37-yard touchdown in the first quarter against Nevada, Saturday, Aug. 31, 2013, at the Rose Bowl. The question for the Bruins is if he will finish his collegiate career, or enter the NFL draft this year. (Michael Owen Baker/L.A. Daily News file)

Here’s a look at how the roster might look for its 2014 run at national prominence.

Quarterback

If Brett Hundley stays at UCLA, the team has a chance at its first Rose Bowl win since 1986. If he declares for the NFL draft, the Bruins are likely no better than third or fourth in the Pac-12.

Is the redshirt sophomore ready?

“Well, it depends on what you’re talking about, playing well,” Mora said, smiling. “Ten carries for 172 yards (before losses), that’s good running the football. But 16 for 29 ... Brett, I dunno.”

Hundley told the Orange County Register that he had planned to announce his decision following the Sun Bowl, but changed his mind. He didn’t say which way he had been leaning. An educated guess is that he was set on staying until his 387 offensive yards and four touchdowns against the Hokies gave him pause.

Should Hundley leave, he’ll hand the reins to freshman Asiantii Woulard, an Elite 11 MVP. Woulard has the tools to be an eventual star, but UCLA wouldn’t win 10 games with him in 2014.

Running backs

UCLA’s search for a bonafide replacement for all-time leading rusher Johnathan Franklin continues.

Hampered by injuries, no Bruin tailback ran for more than 600 yards this season, opening the door for Hundley to seize the team lead with 748 yards and 11 touchdowns on the ground. The prognosis for 2014 doesn’t look clear either.

Junior Jordon James briefly became the No. 4 rusher in the country, but an ankle injury hobbled him from October on. Redshirt freshman Paul Perkins was serviceable, but never dominant. The name to watch is Craig Lee, a four-star recruit who redshirted this past season.

Receivers

Senior Shaq Evans leaves a 709-yard, nine-touchdown hole, but the Bruins have the bodies to fill it. Devin Lucien and Jordan Payton project as the starting wide receivers, after combining for 779 yards and three scores. Slot receiver Devin Fuller was second on the team with 471 yards.

Y-receiver/tight end Thomas Duarte finished the season with three touchdown catches, tying the school’s true freshman record. A smooth route runner who stands 6-foot-3, 221 pounds, he could easily double that total next season.

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Offensive line

That UCLA’s offensive line didn’t implode when it was forced to start three true freshmen speaks to both the talent of the 2013 recruiting class as well as the existence of minor miracles. The Bruins allowed 36 sacks, down from 52 in 2012.

Right guard Alex Redmond won a starting spot shortly before the season opener and eventually earned Freshman All-America honors. Caleb Benenoch and Scott Quessenberry played capably at right tackle and left guard, respectively, and redshirt sophomore center Jake Brendel worked through a bout of bad snaps.

Youth sets up the team well moving forward. Junior Xavier Su’a-Filo is close to a decision regarding the NFL draft, but did not reveal which way he is leaning. Assuming that the second-team AP All-American goes pro, the Bruins’ offensive line will need to replace its most talented and experience player.

Defensive line

Defensive end Eddie Vanderdoes and nose tackle Kenny Clark both look on track for eventual NFL careers after exemplary debuts as true freshmen. Vanderdoes has lived up to his five-star reputation after a rocky decommitment from Notre Dame, while Clark is a bruising physical specimen that mauls opposing linemen.

The unit loses versatile pass-rusher Cassius Marsh, and will rely on senior Owamagbe Odighizuwa to fill out the rest of the starting lineup. A former five-star recruit, Odighizuwa is coming off multiple hip surgeries; if he’s effective, the line should be in great shape.

Linebackers

UCLA is about to lose its best defensive player in at least a decade in Anthony Barr, who is expected to a top-10 NFL draft pick this spring.

On the other hand, it also returns one of college football’s most exciting players in Myles Jack, the first to ever be named the conference’s top offensive and defensive newcomer. His presence will ensure this group’s competitiveness for two more years, but whether or not the Bruins linebackers corps are elite again next year is uncertain. Rising junior Kenny Orjioke is the likely candidate to replace Barr, while Isaako Savaiinaea should move into a starting spot at inside linebacker.

Leading tackler Eric Kendricks should be a steadying presence up the middle as a senior, but UCLA will miss Jordan Zumwalt’s big hits.

Secondary

After an awful 2012, UCLA’s secondary performed consistently if not spectacularly for most of this season. Every starting defensive back returns, and position coach Demetrice Martin continues to pull in top recruits to quickly rebuild what was once the Bruins’ weakest area.

Safeties Anthony Jefferson and Randall Goforth and cornerbacks Fabian Moreau and Ishmael Adams each hold the edge on staying first string, but four-star early signee Adarius Pickett could compete immediately in spring. Tahaan Goodman played mostly special teams as a freshman, while five-star 2013 signee Priest Willis struggled to transition out of high school; both need to have strong camps to earn more defensive snaps.

Special teams

UCLA finished the season top 20 nationally in covering both kickoff returns (18.67 yards per attempt) and punt returns (3.94). The Bruins still haven’t returned a kickoff for a touchdown since 2007, or a punt since 2005.

Cornerback Ishmael Adams provides some hope there if his late-season emergence was any indication. He debuted against Arizona State with 234 return yards on six attempts.

Ka’imi Fairbairn only made 14 of 21 field-goal attempts. In his last three games, he connected from 48 and 23 yards out while missing from 39, 37 and 36.

Punter Sean Covington, an All-Pac-12 honorable mention pick, has the Bruins set at punter for the next three years.

Coaching

Mora has proved himself an excellent college head coach after a long pro career, and heads into 2014 with a greater onus to carve UCLA a spot among the national elite.

Texas is reportedly interested, but he already turned down an offer from alma mater Washington and agreed to an extension through 2019, securing raises for his assistants in the meantime. That helped him retained offensive line coach and star recruiter Adrian Klemm after a strong push by USC, as well as add former USC assistant Kennedy Polamalu as a running backs coach.

Eventually, someone will leave for a promotion elsewhere — linebackers coach/special teams coordinator Jeff Ulbrich is an up-and-comer — but the crew should remain intact for at least another season.